"If you could say it in words,
there would be no reason to paint" -edward hopper
To create is to...
Creating something from nothing seems easy to some but for this blog, you are going to meet an artist who doesn't just throw paint on a canvas and call it good. She pours her heart and puts her love into every piece she makes. I'd like to introduce my friend, Susan Kelbaugh. Susan and I share a passion for creating and adding beauty into this world.
When asking about the name of her studio, it was clear to me that her art has meaning from the start of what she does. Susan took her middle name and her mom's middle name to create Lorraine Lee Studios. "My mom can be described in one word: phenomenal. She is a positive and strong influence in my life, she brings joy and happiness everywhere she goes. I wanted to acknowledge my admiration of her and thought what better way to do this than to unite us with the name of my art studio."
I was in Susan's studio recently and was able to watch her paint and watched her acrylic pouring process. There was much more that went into the work than I had originally thought! It was like watching a chef in her kitchen making a decadent dessert. From mixing and measuring to create the right consistency of paint to adding silicone and sparkle, her magic ingredient is having fun and loving what she does. Her studio is filled with a lot of laughter! Here is something she wrote about a recent journey she embarked as an artist.
"One of my closest friends asked me to make two large pieces for her new house last year and it was in that moment that I realized that my art brings happiness to others. I have had times in my life where I allowed my fear of judgement and failure to set in. It has taken me many years to identify as an artist and to share my work with others. It’s personal, I pour my heart into every painting. I continue to work on turning fear into energy and to fiercely overcome it. One way I’m doing that is by selling my work online. Not only am I excited (and nervous) to see where this takes me, I’m thankful for my journey. In times of darkness I’ve found light and created color. I’m proud to share my work with everyone and I hope it brings a little piece of happiness to the world."
One thing that I can attest to, Susan certainly brings life into her art!
Owner/Artist
"Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time."
—Thomas Merton
What's your why?
Knowing that there is purpose in what Susan does, I asked her what being an artist means to her. "I’ve been painting and drawing since I can remember. Painting is a creative outlet that allows me to turn energy and stress into something beautiful. I never know how things are going to turn out, which is part of the fun. I have an idea of what I want to create and I move where the paint takes me. It’s something I can share, teach and make memories with my children doing.
Painting is messy and so is life, I hope my children continue to smile, laugh and to find the beautiful colors when life is messy. I hope they pursue their passions and always use their creativity and imagination to achieve their dreams. Being an artist allows me to show my children to never give up on the things you love doing."
show some love
"Art is something that makes you breathe with a different kind of happiness."
—Anni Albers
